Coaching in the Vikings League is not just for professionals. In our league, there is always a shortage of volunteer coaches. We encourage parents (with and without past soccer experience) to participate and make a difference in their own and other children's lives. It's not as hard as it looks! Clinics are run both in and outiside our district to provide you with skills as your players grow (please view our clinic and resources page for more information).

Frequently Asked Questions

Dear Coaches,

Every year, Vikings coaches and parents run into some challenges. This is especially true for new coaches not yet familiar with Vikings League or the California Youth Soccer Association requirements. To help you anticipate these issues, we’ve put together a list of some of those common stresses, in a Q&A format. We hope that this will help you learn the variety of ways that coaches manage these common stress points. This document is not a restatement of Vikings policies and rules; rather, it is meant as guidance.

If you have suggestions for additional items, please email them to the Vikings League or to me (po_bronson@yahoo.com); this will help us pass down wisdom to new coaches next year. Also, see our new 2010 coach resources page.

Regards,

The following questions are addressed here:
Q. Why is registration for the Fall Season so early, in April and May?
Q. Why can’t registration be completed online?
Q. Why should a team have a Manager, separate from the Coaches?
Q. What are the challenges and advantages of having a school-based team?
Q. What are the challenges and advantages of having a team that is not school-based?
Q. How does the mid-season reshuffling of teams and divisions work?
Q. How do co-ed Microsoccer teams decide whether to separate by gender or remain co-ed when they come to Vikings League?
Q. How can we find other players to join our team, or if I need to place players with a team, how can I find teams that need players?
Q. How often do teams practice?
Q. During a game, how should coaches interact with referees and with players?
Q. How can I get to know the other coaches?
Q. Why does the Police Activities League – not Vikings – run spring soccer season?
Q. Some of my kids just want to have fun; others want to take it seriously, learn the game, and get better. How do coaches handle children of varying ability and interest-level?
Q. What game strategy should I put in place, if any, at the U8 level?
Q. What are the issues we will deal with as the children get older?
Q. How can I become a better coach?

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Q. Why is registration for the Fall Season so early, in April and May?

A. We recognize that most teams have barely begun their spring season when they are forced to make roster decisions about the fall. Many players want to see how the spring goes before committing to fall soccer. Please sign up with the kids who can commit, then add others later.
            We know this is stressful for everyone, but the Vikings timelines are unavoidable, for several reasons. First, we have to follow the CYSA District 1 guidelines. Also, we have to secure field permits, and it helps the city’s Recreation and Park Department accommodate us if we know our exact field needs early. In addition, too many families are unavailable in the summers to complete registration. The best way to deal with this stress is warn parents early and often of what will be needed. After the first year, parents and coaches get used to it and it’s not as frustrating.

Q. Why can’t registration be completed online?

A. We hope that this will be possible in future years. Right now, CYSA District 1 still requires ink signatures from parents and coaches on paper forms, for legal reasons. So while we have made these forms available for download, and player information can be entered online, some of the paperwork still has to be handled the old-fashioned way.
            Teams moving up to Vikings League from Microsoccer certainly find the amount of paperwork required to be a jolt. However, our requirement of player photos, player birth certificates, and coach licensing is standard for all CYSA youth soccer leagues, and is no more burdensome than the requirements for Little League or Pop Warner.
            You can make it easier, for future years, if you keep a copy of your players’ passports or birth certificates – then families don’t have to dig those out each year. But new player photographs are required each year.

Q. Why should a team have a Manager, separate from the Coaches?

It is always good to have a designated Manager as their team’s principal contact, largely because being a coach is emotionally consuming, and sharing the workload helps prevent coach burnout. In addition, teams that have a hired coach might want a parent familiar with the league, to improve communication among parents and in case of coach turnover.

Q. What are the challenges and advantages of having a school-based team?

Many youth soccer teams start as school-based teams. This gives parents and kids a better chance to know each other and deepen relationships. It contributes informally to the overall school experience. Coming to the games is fun for parents, and carpooling to games and practices is easier.
            However, school-based teams usually do encounter some stresses. First, kids bring whatever happened at recess to practice; their familiarity with each other can lead to more horseplay and goofing off. This is especially the case when a parent is the coach – the players know you as a parent first, and may not show you the same respect or attention as they would an adult who was solely their coach.
            The school age-cutoffs are different than the CYSA soccer age-cutoffs; this inevitably means that some children, who are in the same grade or classroom, are not eligible to be on the same team. Some kids can feel left out if all their friends are on the team.
            School-based teams usually have players of very widely-ranging abilities. Inevitably, some players want to learn soccer and take it seriously, and they get frustrated by other players who are just along to have fun and socialize. Children also carry with them antiquated perceptions of social ranking and athletic ranking that were established at school in kindergarten, which usually doesn’t reflect the reality by third grade.
            Beginning at the U10 age group, some children usually break off to join an Upper House team or a Select team, and the kids who stay at recreational level can interpret this as a rejection, when it is not meant as such. Rarely can an entire rec team, from a single school, successfully transition to Upper House.
            Parents, too, feel they have more say when it’s a school-based team. This input might be welcome, or it might be intrusive; what’s best for the whole team might not sync with what a parent wants for their individual child.

Q. What are the challenges and advantages of having a team that is not school-based?

The biggest advantage of a team that is not school-based is that it broadens children’s social experience. It encourages peer groups outside of school, both for players and parents. Rather than perceiving the team as the de-facto “school sports team,” parents and players see the endeavor as a genuine soccer team. Players come to practice to learn and enjoy soccer, rather than socialize. Parents tend to be easier to manage. If players are unhappy or stop having fun, it can be easier to discontinue after a season, without fearing a loss of respect at school.
            The challenge of a team that is not school-based is that carpooling to practices is more difficult to organize. Since not all schools let out at the same time, some players might have trouble being at practice on time.

Q. How does the mid-season reshuffling of teams and divisions work?

A. Vikings League believes that children learn and enjoy soccer the most when playing against teams of similar ability. We make an attempt, prior to the season, to schedule your team against equivalent teams – this is why we require all teams to fill out a Team Census, to get an estimate of the strength-level. After the first four games or so, the League and the Age Group Commissioner look over the results and tweak the schedule to improve the competitiveness of the remaining games.
            Every year, coaches overestimate their team, unintentionally, or sometimes underestimate their team, intentionally – hoping to boost their team’s confidence by getting scheduled against weaker opponents. This is not fair to the opponent and not good for the kids. Vikings League believes all kids should learn how to lose as well as win. Losses give players, and teams, a chance to learn valuable lessons: it stimulates them to work harder in practice to get better; they learn to fight back, during a game, playing from behind; they learn it’s not the end of the world to lose.

Q. How do co-ed Microsoccer teams decide whether to separate by gender or remain co-ed when they come to Vikings League?

A. It is usually not a question whetherto split by gender, but when to split by gender. In Vikings League, co-ed teams play in the Boys divisions. There is no co-ed division. At the U8 and U9 level there are co-ed teams playing, but Vikings makes no effort to ensure they will play other co-ed teams. By U10, most teams have made the gender split. Every year, some teams stay mixed too long and then complain about the physicality of play. A few teams do stay co-ed all the way to the U14 age group, if they have only one or two girls. The easiest way to make a split is to find another mixed team and merge into two teams, one for the boys and one for the girls.

Q. How can we find other players to join our team, or if I need to place players with a team, how can I find teams that need players?

A. The Vikings League website provides such tools. However, if you are coming from Microsoccer and your team is not even formed yet, the best way may be to telephone or email other coaches you met in prior seasons. Ask around at your school, church, or community center. Vikings rules forbid teams from having tryouts – teams are supposed to accept players who want to join, as long as they meet the age requirement and attend practices and games, regardless of their ability.

Q. How often do teams practice?

A. Vikings League provides one practice field for one hour per week. Unfortunately, this is all the city can accommodate. At the young ages, about 10% of teams find a way to practice a second day of the week during the season. By the U11 age group, about half the teams practice twice a week. Upper House teams are given a 90-minute practice session.
            Because some kids are hungry for more practice, the Vikings League – in coordination with the Vikings Club – provides the Player Academy for U8 and U9 kids. This allows children to attend individually, and get an additional day of practice each week during the fall season. This is not done through your team; children and their parents must sign up for the season, not on a drop-in or single-session basis. Space is limited; check the sfvikings.com web site for details.

Q. During a game, how should coaches interact with referees and with players?

A. During a game, a coach should have extremely-limited interaction with the referee, if at all. Unlike other American sports, in soccer the referee has no obligation to explain a call to a coach, principally because it’s a running clock and would waste time. If you have a concern, discuss it with the referee in a very polite manner at half-time. Never argue the direction of a throw-in, it’s not worth it and won’t affect the game as it might in American football or basketball. At the younger ages referees may choose not to whistle an incorrect throw-in or a goalie touching the ball with her hands outside the penalty area, in order to keep the game going. The right time to talk to a referee is before the game starts, when you check in – have a friendly chat, confirm the length of the halves and the substitution breaks. But during the actual game, the only reasons to interact with the referee are: 1) if a player is injured and on the ground, and the referee has not spotted this; 2) if an unsafe situation needs immediate attention.
            Unlike in other American sports, soccer coaches cannot call time-out, draw up plays, or shout orders. Coaches should strive to keep communication with players to a minimum, do so only when it’s truly necessary, and each season should find themselves saying less on the sidelines. The right time to teach strategy is at practice, before the game, and at halftime.

Q. How can I get to know the other coaches?

A. Having relationships with other coaches and other teams helps make the years in Vikings more fun. Often, the first chance to meet each other is the day you spend getting your F-license. At games, it starts with a smile and a friendly attitude towards the other team; a little sideline chit-chat can lead to a follow-up email, mixed practices, or practice games off-season. Later, you may seek advice from each other, share tips, and potentially discuss helping each others’ players as the teams progress through the age brackets. You may see the same faces coachng through the years in your division, get to know them.

Q. Why does the Police Activities League – not Vikings – run the spring soccer season?

A. The city’s Recreation and Park Department allocates fields to the different leagues by season, and they prefer it this way. In addition, the Mission Youth Soccer League runs the summer season. Teams that register with one league can play in the other leagues. In this way, no league monopolizes youth soccer here, and youth soccer gets the attention of the San Francisco Recreation & Park Department via several channels.

Q. Some of my kids just want to have fun; others want to take it seriously, learn the game, and get better. How do coaches handle children of varying ability and interest-level?

A. Be patient. Children develop at different rates. Many children who showed only moderate interest or ability level in their first years do indeed become wonderful, serious soccer players as they mature. If you are creating a school-based team, you have to accept that a very wide variety of talent will be on your team. If you want a more competitive team, search for players from a wider pool than just your school. You cannot have tryouts at the recreational level, but you can state your team’s philosophy and intentions to parents, so that they can see if your intentions match theirs.
            Please keep in mind that all teams, even the most competitive serious teams, still have a range of talent. For every soccer team in the world, there are leaders and role players. Successful team play means finding the right roles for each player. At the youth level, give the children some time to develop, and then find a place on the field where they can contribute. Adopt a tactical strategy that gets the most out of the entire team. Some children might be able to kick the ball far, but don’t run much; others can run hard but can’t dribble; some are good with their hands and not their feet. Each of these types of children can play an important role on a team. You may find that they enjoy it more and play better if they are not switching positions a lot, and are allowed to master the demands of just one or two positions. Meanwhile, your stronger players can be put in central roles and/or moved into a variety of positions.

Q. What game strategy should I put in place, if any, at the U8 level?

A. Most teams begin their first U8 season teaching at least two defenders to stay back on defense, to prevent easy counter-attacks. Teams that just let all the kids swarm the ball quickly find they need to implement at least this simple tactic. If you are a Microsoccer team at the U7 level playing 4 vs 4, consider teaching this strategy now, asking one player to hang back as a sweeper.
            Beyond that it’s a matter of what the children can grasp. Consider using triangle or diamond positioning, where the offense is a triangle or diamond, and the defense is also a triangle or diamond. Teach situation-specific strategies for goal kicks, throw-ins, and corner-kicks.

Q. What are the issues we will deal with as the children get older?

A. The very first season, coaches are happy to simply complete registration successfully and enjoy the games. Within two years, the roster (and number of players on the field) starts to grow, until they are playing 11 vs. 11 at the U12 age. Around the same time, some children choose to join an Upper House team or try out for a Select team. This means there is some ebb and flow of players between teams, and coaches need to find new players.
            When elementary school ends is usually a big transition point. There are half as many U12 teams in the Vikings League as U11 teams, because school-based teams sometimes disband as the players depart for a variety of middle-schools, and some players decide they don’t really want to play soccer. Teams that have been carried along by a single star player often don’t survive when that player leaves for a more competitive team. Sometimes coaches recruit new players, or they offer their squad to other teams, or they merge with another team to continue.

Q. How can I become a better coach?

Vikings League hosts basic and advanced coaching clinics that teach game strategy. While they are time-consuming, you will learn a lot and network with other coaches. The league does not present drills or games for practice ideas, simply because there are so many resources available online. Search for “soccer drills for children” and you will find an infinite number of quality videos. In addition, we encourage coaches to get to know each other, welcome each other to watch their practices, and share successful ideas. Consider recruiting an assistant to help, from local high schools or colleges or perhaps a fellow parent. Also see our resources page. We do counsel these general principles:

Remember, the most important thing for a player’s development is to simply continue playing. This means they should be enjoying themselves, and they should feel a genuine desire to continue on the following season – not just an obligation to do so. The best way to foster this intrinsic love of the game is to put the team and the players in situations where they are challenged but not overwhelmed.

Please know that no matter what situation is causing you stress, other teams have managed to work through the same situation before, and it’ll work out again. Also check out coach Po's A.C. Swampfire's team page for instructioanal videos.

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